Graphic: Xu Zihe/GT

An online petition demanding that the World Health Organization investigate Fort Detrick lab was attacked by multiple US IP addresses Saturday night as the number of signatures approached 10 million. 

However, the attacks failed to stop the enthusiasm of Chinese netizens. The signatures exceeded 10 million on Saturday evening, about a week since the petition was launched on July 17, as Chinese netizens are outraged by the US' politicization of COVID-19 origins tracing probe.

Chinese observers said the strong appeal shows that Chinese people will not stop questioning the American lab until the US gives a reasonable explanation, and they also urged the WHO to truly play its coordinating role based on science and objectivity rather than becoming a political tool of the US.

The Global Times has learned that many medical staff who were at the frontline of the epidemic fight in Wuhan last year also actively participated in signing the petition. Among them are Wang Xinghuan, dean of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University and Leishenshan Hospital, and Peng Peng, who received an award of "advanced individual" in the nation's epidemic fight and dean of Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital, one of the first designated hospitals for early patients in Wuhan.

Photo:AFP

Wang told the Global Times that he was infuriated by US slander of Wuhan Institute of Virology. 

"I know very clearly that the institute was vilified and this inconceivable slander only shows the vilifiers are inhumane. Humanity's lack of unity and trust is one reason the virus has grown into the pandemic of today's scale. China is able to control the virus spread because it has unity and trust of its people, which are manifestation of the level of civilization. I hope everyone can work together and end the pandemic," said Wang. 

A group of Chinese netizens drafted an open letter urging the WHO to investigate Fort Detrick lab, and entrusted the Global Times to post the letter on WeChat and Weibo on July 17 to solicit a public response.

They told the Global Times that despite the WHO-China joint experts group's conclusion that a lab leak is "extremely unlikely," the US has never stopped twisting the facts and even claimed that the virus came from a Wuhan lab. 

These netizens believe that if "it's premature to rule out lab leak theory" as WHO chief claimed on July 16, US' Fort Detrick lab should be the target of a thorough investigation as the lab hosts many dangerous viruses and pathogens and have been conducting dangerous experiments.